Advice about nickel plated
- Thread starter mike1340
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Driftwood Johnson
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Howdy
The problem with many solvents is that they contain ammonia. Ammonia will attack the thin layer of copper between the steel and the nickel plating. I suggest you try MPro7. They claim it is safe for nickel plating.
http://www.mpro7.com/
The problem with many solvents is that they contain ammonia. Ammonia will attack the thin layer of copper between the steel and the nickel plating. I suggest you try MPro7. They claim it is safe for nickel plating.
http://www.mpro7.com/
bannockburn
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mike1340
What Driftwood said. I avoid any sort of copper solvents on plated guns as it can work it's way into the layer of copper plating and cause it to peel or flake off, taking the nickel or chrome plating with it. I have had this Colt Combat Commander for many years and the only part that I use Hoppes No. 9 on is the barrel. I wipe any remaining solvent off the barrel and and reassemble the gun. No problems with the plating staying intact.
What Driftwood said. I avoid any sort of copper solvents on plated guns as it can work it's way into the layer of copper plating and cause it to peel or flake off, taking the nickel or chrome plating with it. I have had this Colt Combat Commander for many years and the only part that I use Hoppes No. 9 on is the barrel. I wipe any remaining solvent off the barrel and and reassemble the gun. No problems with the plating staying intact.
Tallball
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This one is 100 years old. Apparently someone got some solvent on it at some point, or maybe it's just 100 years of wear. It still shoots great.
I use a little bit of solvent inside the barrel and cylinder, and am VERY VERY careful not to get any of it on the finish. I just wipe the outside down with an oily rag and call it good.
I use a little bit of solvent inside the barrel and cylinder, and am VERY VERY careful not to get any of it on the finish. I just wipe the outside down with an oily rag and call it good.
Driftwood Johnson
Member
That is just normal wear and flaking of the nickel plating, not necessarily a sign of any type of solvent. Notice how the plating is worn most at the muzzle, from being holstered and drawn a fair amount. What I find interesting is I see no flaking on the cylinder, as opposed to flaking and light pitting all over the rest of the gun. Does the cylinder bear the same Serial Number as the rest of the gun? The SN should appear four places on that gun. The SN of record is on the butt. The SN should also appear at the rear of the cylinder, underside of the barrel, and underside of the extractor star. Any discrepancy from the SN of record means the gun did not leave the factory with that part.
This S&W 38 Single Action 2nd Model is 139 years old. Notice how the plating is starting to flake in a few places. Normal for an old gun that might not have spent its entire life in a sock drawer. Notice most of the flaking on this gun is in the flutes of the cylinder. I suspect that is more from Black Powder residue not being thoroughly cleaned off than from wear. If it was wear, the wear would happen in high spots, not protected areas such as the cylinder flutes. I suspect BP fouling lurked there for a while and started breaking down the nickel plating over time.
Sunray
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You sure it's nickel? Nickel plating is 19th Century technology that doesn't wear well.
Tallball
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Driftwood Johnson - I have owned this particular S&W Hand Ejector for a couple of years, and always thought it odd that the finish on the cylinder did not match the finish on the rest of the gun. It almost looks like the cylinder is stainless steel and the rest of the gun is aging nickel plate. Well... your expert advice has... made it even more confusing! The serial number on the cylinder exactly matches the one on the butt! I have no theory to explain this. It must be aliens, time travel, or both. 
Nickel plating is not very wear or chemical resistant. My dad screwed up a nickel model 19 by trying to take lead and powder fouling off with scotchbrite. I foolishly had a ROA nickeled and it pitted in the four hours travel time from match to home.
Dog Soldier
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Nickle plating properly applied can be found on handguns 150 years old. I don't see that as a failure in handgun finishs. Any firearm is service for over a century will show wear. The nickle can stand solvents moisture etc as well as any type of bluing. This S&W DA .44 Russian was used on the "Outlaw Trail" dating to 1885. It rode many miles in an open holster
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Driftwood Johnson
Member
Howdy Again
There is nothing wrong with Nickel plating as a finish for firearms. You just can't abuse it.
During the 19h Century Smith and Wesson actually produced more revolvers with a Nickel plated finish than they produced with blued finishes. They did this because Nickel plating was more durable than the blued finishes of the time. Later, better blueing processes made blue finishes more durable, but I have a bunch of Nickel plated S&W revolvers from the 19th Century, and most of them are still wearing their original finishes and most of them are in pretty good condition.
S&W 32 Single Action from 1889.
S&W Safety Hammerless, 2nd Model from 1905.
S&W 38 Double Action, 3rd Model from 1888.
S&W 38 Double Action Perfected from 1917.
I am cheating a little bit with this S&W New Model Number Three because it was refinished at the factory in1965.
S&W 38 Military and Police, 1st Model, aka Model of 1899 Army Navy-Revolver. This one shipped in October of 1899.
Not just Smith and Wesson. This Merwin Hulbert Pocket Army is still wearing its original Nickel plated finish. Just very minor flaking, not bad for a gun made in the early 1880s.
There is nothing wrong with Nickel plating as a finish for firearms. You just can't abuse it.
During the 19h Century Smith and Wesson actually produced more revolvers with a Nickel plated finish than they produced with blued finishes. They did this because Nickel plating was more durable than the blued finishes of the time. Later, better blueing processes made blue finishes more durable, but I have a bunch of Nickel plated S&W revolvers from the 19th Century, and most of them are still wearing their original finishes and most of them are in pretty good condition.
S&W 32 Single Action from 1889.
S&W Safety Hammerless, 2nd Model from 1905.
S&W 38 Double Action, 3rd Model from 1888.
S&W 38 Double Action Perfected from 1917.
I am cheating a little bit with this S&W New Model Number Three because it was refinished at the factory in1965.
S&W 38 Military and Police, 1st Model, aka Model of 1899 Army Navy-Revolver. This one shipped in October of 1899.
Not just Smith and Wesson. This Merwin Hulbert Pocket Army is still wearing its original Nickel plated finish. Just very minor flaking, not bad for a gun made in the early 1880s.
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Nickel is fine with some care in the use of solvents. I had a nickel Smith 29 I carried a bit when riding motorcycles, I cleaned it with Hoppes No 9, but never left it soak. It was advised against, so just cleaned the gun, dried it and oiled working parts and the rest left dry. Same for a Colt SAA 44 spl. The Colt was mostly cleaned with plain hot water when I was shooting black powder loads, but when smokeless loads were used it was cleaned with Hoppes.
Great old Smiths Driftwood. Like the 2nd Model single action 38.
Great old Smiths Driftwood. Like the 2nd Model single action 38.
Dog Soldier
member
My own S&W 29-2 has been exposed to most elements and cleaned with what ever was handy. The Grips were made from a head board that came up the Trail from Missouri in 1869. I have owned this .44 since 1962.
Dog Soldier
member
Well not really.
But Malamute the Mdl. 29 was the .44 HE then the Mdl.29, 29-1 and the best with strategic improvements 29-2. I still find these old 29s to be the perfect holster revolver. The 29-2 has finished elk, moose and bears. It has taken numerous Antelope and Mule deer. The old six gun has allowed me to sleep comfortable many nights on the range.
But Malamute the Mdl. 29 was the .44 HE then the Mdl.29, 29-1 and the best with strategic improvements 29-2. I still find these old 29s to be the perfect holster revolver. The 29-2 has finished elk, moose and bears. It has taken numerous Antelope and Mule deer. The old six gun has allowed me to sleep comfortable many nights on the range.
Driftwood Johnson
Member
Howdy Again
You know I can't let a teeny bit of incorrect information slip by without making a minor correction.
The .44 Hand Ejector (HE) series of revolvers, first came out in 1908, with the .44 Hand Ejector, 1st Model, also known as the New Century, and affectionately nicknamed the Triple Lock.
This one shipped in 1915, towards the end of production.
This was followed in 1915 by the 44 Hand Ejector, 2nd Model, lacking the elaborate 3rd cylinder latch at the frame and the barrel shroud for the ejector rod. This one shipped in 1921. Yes, it has a bit of wear to the finish, but it functions and shoots fine.
Then came the 44 Hand Ejector, 3rd Model, sometimes known as the Model of 1926, and also known as the Wolf & Klar Model, with a return to the barrel shroud. This one shipped in 1929 and was carried by an officer during WWII. It has been refinished at some point, but it too still functions and shoots fine.
Finally in 1950 there was the 44 Hand Ejector, 4th Model, which came in two versions, the Military Model with fixed sights, and the Target Model with adjustable sights. This Target Model shipped in 1955.
All of these revolvers were chambered for the 44 Special cartridge. Well, not quite all, there were other chamberings, but the 44 Magnum cartridge had not yet been invented.
Finally in 1955 Smith and Wesson produced the first prototype N frame revolvers for the brand-spanky new 44 Magnum cartridge. A beefed up version of the old 44 HE series, boasting the latest in metallurgy to allow it to take the pressure of the new cartridge. Like its predecessor The 357 Magnum, the new revolver was simply called The 44 Magnum. No other name or Model number yet. Although it is acceptable in some quarters to call the new revolver the Pre-Model 29.
This Model 29-2 shipped in 1967. No, it is not one of the rare ones with a 5" barrel, the barrel was cut down at some point.
Finally in 1957 when S&W changed over to a model numbering system, The 44 Magnum revolver became the Model 29. So the point of this little lecture is the Model 29 did not spring directly from the loins of the 44 Hand Ejector series, there was a brief interlude where the new revolver was simply called The 44 Magnum.
And while we're at it, aside from some blemishes from wear and some very minor pin pricking, doesn't the nickel plating on this 101 year old Triple Lock look pretty good? No idea what it has been cleaned with over the years, but the plating is not flaking or separating at all.
IMHO, nickel plating was widely used not so much because of its rust prevention, but because it was a fad! The plating of steel was a fairly new technique in the years after the U.S. Civil War, and was used for everything from stoves to sewing needles. The practice became so common that the phrase "nickel plated" came to mean ostentatious and/or overpriced. The New York, Chicago, and St. Louis Railroad was called (and remained unofficially) the Nickel Plate Line (stock - "NKP") by William Henry Vanderbilt, after he was forced to pay 72 million dollars (equal to over 300 million today and roughly four times its estimated value) for the line to keep it out of the hands of Jay Gould.
It was popular for guns that were to be carried on the person, especially in connection with a later invention (and fad), the shoulder holster, since it protected the steel against perspiration and the tanning agents used in leather.
Jim
It was popular for guns that were to be carried on the person, especially in connection with a later invention (and fad), the shoulder holster, since it protected the steel against perspiration and the tanning agents used in leather.
Jim
Actually Hoppe's Number 9 will actually strip the revolver finish right off if left to soak for any length of tiem
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